Maureen Rothrauff

I work for my family although my husband, John and I together are the boss. Altogether, in my household, there are two children, a West Highland Terrier and a goldfish.

Family

Spouse: Dr. John Rothrauff, DDSChildren: Charles (6) and Patrick (4)

Family in office?

None

Reasons for running

I am the mother of a kindergartener. My children will be in the Poland public school system for the next 15 years. I want to lead the Poland School District to higher academic achievement, while lowering but maximizing taxpayer capital.I will involve local and state government officials in trying to achieve lawful and greater public school funding so that Poland’s children receive an exceptional public education at the lowest possible cost to Poland taxpayers.

Priorities

Optimizing the quality of public education is my utmost priority. Public education is expensive. According to the former interim Superintendent, Don Dailey, the cost to educate a student in Poland is $5800 per student per year. The state pays only $2000 of that expense; the balance is paid in small part by the federal government and in large part by property taxes from Poland homeowners. I have formulated two distinct goals, one long-term and one short-term.

In the long-term, it is necessary to demand that the state provide more funding for public education. There is an education funding caucus for Ohio public schools later this month as well as Senate bills being written asking for definition and implementation of “adequate and equitable funding.” I will be the advocate for greater funding for the Poland schools from the state.

In the meantime, elementary students deserve a dedicated music teacher. Talented athletes deserve to play regardless of household income. The residents of Poland have agreed to contribute to education in addition to the taxes they pay, many of them thinking that more teachers would be hired and pay-to-play would be eliminated. The Poland School Board needs to reallocate its resources to try to achieve these priorities while also educating the community about its limited funding.

Qualifications

My greatest qualification is the great extent to which I value public education. Additionally, I have spoken to hundreds of Poland residents to find out how they perceive the Poland School District and its funding. My ability to communicate those opinions and values from the Poland community will also be essential to my contribution as part of the Poland School Board. As the mother of an elementary school student, I have unlimited accessibility. I attend PTO meetings, soccer games, football games and library programs. I shop at local grocery stores and dine at local restaurants. I can also be contacted via phone and e-mail.

My two degrees and extensive management experience may seem like my greatest qualifications. While they are valuable, I will use them to support my drive and motivation to represent Poland residents while maintaining education as my highest priority.

Positions on the issues

All issues are relevant. According to the Poland residents I have spoken to, the following six issues are of the most concern (in the following order):

1. State funding: The current model must be adjusted to more fairly fund public education. Governer Kasich’s Achievement Everywhere plan bases future funding on property taxes alone and proposes expansion of voucher programs. It is not adequate to base funding on property taxes alone. We must also look at statistics such as test scores and attendance to determine which school districts deserve better funding. It does not seem equitable to give lower-property wealth districts more money and then offer to send students to higher-property wealth districts that receive less overall funding.2. Consolidation: Many residents believe that Poland could have avoided establishing its pay-to-play policy if an elementary school had been closed. I have not been to a board meeting where this was discussed but I will make decisions based on what will best improve the quality of education for Poland children.3. Levies: Most Ohio school districts must ask taxpayers to fund schools. The community must become better educated on how public schools are funded. Homeowners with children in public schools may benefit the most from passing levies but there is a positive relationship between every individual property value and quality of public education. Perhaps an adjustment of the sales tax allocation model would allow families to contribute more than residents who do not have children in public schools.4. Extras: Poland has eliminated music teachers and art teachers in the elementary schools. Additional state funding may provide the capital needed to hire these teachers in the future but these subjects are vital to education and must be better introduced to young children. 5. Pay-to-Play: This policy is detrimental to the parents of Poland students and students’ public educational experiences. This may limit or eliminate a students’ ability to participate in extra-curricular activity.6. Technology: There seems to be a lack of working computers and other hardware in the Poland schools. At a recent board meeting, one board member pointed out that several schools have excessive savings from fundraisers and parent donations. These funds could be used to upgrade the current level of technology.

I look forward to establishing policies for the Poland School District as a board member and as a mother. Several issues will substantially impact local jobs, education and funding and evoke emotional debates from Poland residents. The quality of Poland’s public education will always be the yardstick by which I measure the proposed outcome of every decision.